FOOTBALL | Page 2 CCRICKETRICKET | Page 7 FIFA chief India eye To Advertise here backs ‘more whitewash as Call: 444 11 300, 444 66 621 open’ 48-team Kohli looks World Cup for runs Friday, October 7, 2016 TENNIS Muharram 6, 1438 AH Nadal eases into GULF TIMES quarters on rain-hit day in Beijing SPORT Page 4 2018 WORLD CUP QUALIFICATION — ASIA SWIMMING ‘Iron Lady’ Hosszu Son on target as hopes to continue domination at S Korea survive 2016 World Cup By Sports Reporter length of the pool and secured a re- Doha markable fi nal time of 4:26.36. Hosszu won another gold medal and set a new Olympic record in the fter an amazing perform- 200m individual medley, and won ance in the Rio 2016 Olym- her third gold medal in the 100m brave Qatar pic Games, Hungary’s star backstroke as well as snagging silver swimmer Katinka Hosszu in the 200m backstroke. With a total Adid not stop to catch her breath – Olympic medal haul of three gold and Syria shock China, while late goal gives Japan 2-1 win over Iraq heading straight into the FINA/air- one silver medal, Hosszu won more weave Swimming World Cup series medals in individual events than any – eager to keep her momentum from other swimmer in Rio 2016. Rio. Next up for Hosszu is the Doha After an amazing display of swim- leg of the FINA/airweave Swimming ming supremacy in Rio, it is hard to World Cup which will be held in the imagine that the Iron Lady almost Hamad Aquatic Centre from 8-9 Oc- quit swimming after a disappointing tober. performance in the London 2012 Ol- The Iron Lady picked up her nick- ympics, where she placed 4th in the name after she won fi ve medals in a 400m individual medley. 2012 meet in Beijing in just two days, “I am very happy with my per- which prompted the stunned Chi- formance in the Rio 2016 Olympics. nese media to ask her if she was made I worked very hard since London of iron – a question that is as relevant 2012 to be in a good place for the next as ever. Games and I think we achieved that,” Despite the humble start of her she said, adding “I’m very excited to career – her fi rst participation came get right back to competing, espe- in the 2004 European short course cially in Doha, where it always feels swimming championships in which like home.” she managed a single bronze medal Not knowing the meaning of fa- in the 400m medley – Hosszu has tigue, Hosszu jumped right back into been steadily developing as an athlete the FINA airweave Swimming World and snagging many medals along the Cup series as soon as the Rio 2016 way. In 2013 she took two gold medals Olympics concluded. In the French and one bronze medal in the World leg of the World Cup she took home Championships, and an astound- seven medals including fi ve gold and ing 24 gold medals and 6 new world two silver medals. The swimming records during the FINA/airweave juggernaut continued her domina- Swimming World Cup series. tion in the following Berlin edition The following year proved equally where she snagged a jaw-dropping 11 successful for Katinka as she went medals. Hosszu then headed to Mos- on to break the short course world cow where she took home 6 medals in records in the 100m and 200m indi- total. vidual backstroke events and in the The Hungarian swimmer, who is 100m, 200m and 400m individual coached by her animated husband medleys in Doha. Shane Tusup, will head to Doha from The unstoppable Hosszu, who re- tomorrow to 9 October at the Hamad cently opened her own swimming Aquatic Centre. After an incredible school in her native Hungary named year, Hosszu surely hopes to continue “Iron Aquatics Swimming School”, her massive success in Doha. used her incredible momentum in the Don’t miss out on witnessing 2015 World Championships in Kazan, this incredible athlete in action live Russia to win gold in the 200m indi- in Doha’s state-of-the-art Hamad vidual medal and set a lightning fast Aquatic Centre and get your tickets new world record of 2:06.12, as well online via www.qtickets.com Ticket South Korea’s Jang Hyun-soo and Jung Woo-young vie for the ball with Qatar’s Karim Boudiaf during the World Cup 2018 Qualifier in Suwon, South Korea, yesterday. (Reuters) as another gold medal in the 400m prices are set at QR20 per person per individual medley and a bronze in the session. Given this year’s stellar line AFP ing ball into the net. 200m backstroke event. up of athletes, be sure to book your Doha In Tashkent, Uzbekistan crashed to In the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, ticket well ahead of time. their fi rst defeat, a 27th minute header which marked her fourth Olympic Hosszu will be joined by many oth- from Jalal Hosseini off a Masoud Shojaei appearance, the 27-year-old swim- er Olympians and World Champions, outh Korean sharpshooter Son free-kick proving decisive in the match. mer won the gold medal and abso- with the full line-up for the upcom- Heung-Min kept Qatar’s World Uzbekistan couldn’t breach the lutely demolished the world record ing FINA airweave Swimming World Cup ambitions on hold and strong Iranian defence, having lost in the 400m individual medley by Cup – Doha to be revealed soon. Japan also survived a scare as twice AFC Player of the Year Server almost 2 seconds. China’s Ye Shi- Find out more at www.qatarswim- SChina suff ered a potentially calamitous Djeparov to injury after the fi rst half. wen set the world record at the 2012 ming.com, follow us @SWC_Doha defeat to Syria yesterday. In Abu Dhabi, the UAE bounced back London Games, with 4:28.43, Hosszu on Twitter, and search for FINA air- Iran, meanwhile stayed on course for from their loss to Australia to put their was under that pace after 50 meters, weave Swimming World Cup Doha on a Russia 2018 spot after shifting Uz- campaign back on track with a 3-1 win 100 metres, 150 metres — after every Facebook. bekistan from the top of Group A on over Thailand. goal diff erence with a 1-0 victory in Ali Mabkhout was the hero for the Tashkent. hosts with a goal in each half while Iran are also the only team in the Ahmed Khalil added the third in injury group not to concede a goal in three South Korea’s Son Heung-Min celebrates Sebastian Soria scored Qatar’s second time to help UAE record their second matches so far, having beaten Qatar 2-0 after scoring a goal against Qatar. goal yesterday. win of the campaign, including an up- and drawn goalless with China earlier. set victory over Japan. But the torment continued for Qa- confi dence before going to Iran.” Yamaguchi smashed a loose ball from a Substitute Tana Chanabut gave tar as they remained at the bottom af- Qatar’s new coach Jorge Fossati, who corner through a forest of legs and into the Thais some hope with a fi ne 65th ter suff ering their third straight defeat replaced Jose Daniel Carreno only last the Iraqi goal. minute goal, but the UAE were far yesterday. month, said he was still optimistic after Genki Haraguchi had put the four- better on the night as they took their The 2022 hosts were done in by Tot- his team scored their fi rst goals of the time Asian champions ahead with a points tally to six. tenham Hotspur’s Son who extended his third qualifying round. brilliant fl ick between his legs before electric club form with the winning goal “I’m very optimistic about the quali- Saad Luaibi nodded Iraq’s equaliser af- RESULTS in South Korea’s 3-2 triumph in Suwon. fi cation,” Fossati said, adding that ter half-time. Group A Qatar fought bravely and they took a Qatar “confronted one of the top four In Xian, Syrian forward Mahmoud South Korea 3 (Ki Sung-Yueng 11, Ji shock 2-1 lead into the break thanks to teams in Asia”. al-Mawas’s breakaway goal in the 54th Dong-Won 56, Son Heung-Min 58) Qatar Hassan al-Haydos’s penalty and Se- In Saitama, Japan needed a 95th- minute settled a gritty game which left 2 (Al-Haydos 16-pen, Soria 45) bastian Soria’s goal at the end of the minute strike from substitute Hotaru China stranded on one point from their China 0 Syria 1 (Al-Mawas 54) fi rst half. Yamaguchi to down Iraq 2-1 and stay on fi rst three games in Group A. Uzbekistan 0 Iran 1 (Hosseini 27) But Uli Stielike’s men, seeking their track in Asia’s fi nal qualifying round. Seventy-eighth ranked China have Group B 10th World Cup appearance, levelled But China were stunned 1-0 at ambitions of hosting and even winning Japan 2 (Haraguchi 26, Yamaguchi through Ji Dong-Won before Son, who home by war-ravaged Syria as they a World Cup, but al-Mawas dented 90+5) Iraq 1 (Luaibi 60) has scored fi ve for Spurs already this sea- slipped to fifth in Group A, with only their hopes of reaching the tournament UAE 3 (Ali Ahmed Mabkhout 14, son, curled the winner on 58 minutes. the top two teams reaching Russia for a second time at Russia 2018.